Internationals return for Munster

Unsurprisingly, four of six changes to the Munster starting XV to face Leinster in Saturday night's RaboDirect PRO12 encounter in Thomond Park (KO: 7.30pm) are caused by the return of internationals who had been missing from the squad on Six Nations duty.

Keith Earls, Donncha O'Callaghan, Peter O'Mahony and Ronan O'Gara all return to the team with the flyhalf captaining the side in the absence of Paul O'Connell.

The other personnel change sees Marcus Horan preferred at loose-head to Wian du Preez while a positional switch moves Johne Murphy from the outside centre berth he operated from in Galway, to the right wing.

Horan came on as a 54th-minute replacement for du Preez at the Sportsground and on the basis of his impressive 26-minute shift retains the number 1 shirt a week before the Heineken Cup quarter final.

Mick O'Driscoll and Donncha O'Callaghan will partner up for just the third time this season.

O'Callaghan is playing in his 101st League game while winning his 198th Munster cap and he readily admits this is one of the games that sets his pulses racing.

“These are the games that everyone wants to be involved in." he said "They're what make the dark and dirty nights of winter training so worthwhile.

"And they're great occasions. There's always that bit of a bigger buzz ahead of the Leinster game.

"It'll be a massive game for us," he continued. "They're the form side, a real good side and they'll have all their big boys back so we'll really have to produce something special if we're to get anything out of this."

News of injured trio O'Connell, Donncha Ryan and Conor Murray is positive.

Ryan took a limited part in training yesterday while O'Connell and Murray travelled to Dublin to see a Specialist who cleared them for training next week.

Ryan would look to be on track for inclusion in the squad for the Ulster game while O'Connell and Murray's participation will depend on how they come through training.

MUNSTER (v Leinster): F Jones; J Murphy, K Earls, L Mafi, S Zebo; R O’Gara capt, T O'Leary; M Horan, D Varley, BJ Botha; D O’Callaghan, M O'Driscoll; Dave O'Callaghan, P O’Mahony, J Coughlan.

Replacements: M Sherry, W du Preez, S Archer; B Holland, T O’Donnell, D Williams, I Keatley, D Barnes.